Automated parking technology

ABSTRACT

The disclosed technology enables automated parking of an autonomous vehicle. An example method of performing automated parking for a vehicle comprises obtaining, from a plurality of global positioning system (GPS) devices located on or in an autonomous vehicle, a first set of location information that describes locations of multiple points on the autonomous vehicle, where the first set of location information are associated with a first position of the autonomous vehicle, determining, based on the first set of location information and a location of the parking area, a trajectory information that describes a trajectory for the autonomous vehicle to be driven from the first position of the autonomous vehicle to a parking area, and causing the autonomous vehicle to be driven along the trajectory to the parking area by causing operation of one or more devices located in the autonomous vehicle based on at least the trajectory information.

PRIORITY CLAIMS AND RELATED PATENT APPLICATIONS

This patent document claims the priority to and the benefits of U.S.Provisional Application No. 63/045,767 entitled “AUTOMATED PARKINGTECHNOLOGY” filed on Jun. 29, 2020. The entire disclosure of theaforementioned application is hereby incorporated by reference as partof the disclosure of this application.

TECHNICAL FIELD

This document relates to systems, apparatus, and methods for automatedparking of an autonomous vehicle.

BACKGROUND

Autonomous vehicle navigation is a technology that can allow a vehicleto sense the position and movement of vehicles around an autonomousvehicle and, based on the sensing, control the autonomous vehicle tosafely navigate towards a destination. An autonomous vehicle may controlvarious systems within the vehicle to maintain safety while in motion,such as the steering angle, a throttle amount, the speed of theautonomous vehicle, gear changes, and breaking amount to control theextent to which the brakes are engaged. An autonomous vehicle mayoperate in several modes. In some cases, an autonomous vehicle may allowa driver to operate the autonomous vehicle as a conventional vehicle bycontrolling the steering, throttle, clutch, gear shifter, and/or otherdevices. In other cases, a driver may engage the autonomous vehiclenavigation technology to allow the vehicle to be driven by itself.Several devices located in an autonomous vehicle can be controlled viaelectrical means which can be controlled by signals sent from aprocessor that utilizes a variety of information to determine how toproceed safely.

SUMMARY

This patent document describes systems, apparatus, and methods forautomated parking of an autonomous vehicle. An example method ofperforming automated parking of a vehicle, comprises obtaining, from aplurality of global positioning system (GPS) devices located on or in anautonomous vehicle, a first set of location information that describeslocations of multiple points on the autonomous vehicle, wherein thefirst set of location information are associated with a first positionof the autonomous vehicle; determining, based on the first set oflocation information and a location of the parking area, a trajectoryinformation that describes a trajectory for the autonomous vehicle to bedriven from the first position of the autonomous vehicle to a parkingarea; and causing the autonomous vehicle to be driven along thetrajectory to the parking area by causing operation of one or moredevices located in the autonomous vehicle based on at least thetrajectory information.

In some embodiments, the method further comprises obtaining an imagefrom a camera located on the autonomous vehicle; and determining, fromthe image, a location of a lane associated with the parking area,wherein the causing the operation of the one or more devices is based onthe trajectory information that is based on the location of the lane. Insome embodiments, the method further comprises obtaining an image from acamera located on the autonomous vehicle; and determining, from theimage, one or more attributes related to one or more objects detected inthe image, wherein the causing the operation of the one or more devicesis based on the trajectory information that is further based on the oneor more attributes of the one or more objects. In some embodiments, theone or more objects includes a pedestrian, another vehicle, a trafficsign, or a speed bump.

In some embodiments, the method further comprises obtaining a second setof location information that describes locations of the multiple pointson the autonomous vehicle, wherein the second set of locationinformation are associated with a second position of the autonomousvehicle along the trajectory; and upon determining that at least onelocation information from the second set is within a firstpre-determined distance of a pre-determined position associated with theparking area: obtaining, at a first time and from a magnetic sensorlocated underneath the autonomous vehicle, a first signal indicating afirst distance from the magnetic sensor to a fiducial marker located ona perimeter of the parking area, wherein the causing the operation ofthe one or more devices is based on the trajectory information and isbased on the first distance from the magnetic sensor to the fiducialmarker. In some embodiments, the causing the operation of the one ormore devices is based on determining and sending one or more signals tothe one or more devices, wherein the one or more signals are determinedbased on at least the trajectory information.

In some embodiments, the method further comprises obtain an image from acamera located on the autonomous vehicle; and determine, from the image,a location of a lane that guide the autonomous vehicle to the parkingarea, wherein the causing the operation of the one or more devices isbased on the trajectory information that is further based on thelocation of the lane. In some embodiments, the method further comprisesobtain an image from a camera located on the autonomous vehicle; anddetermine, from the image, one or more locations related to one or moreobjects detected in the image, wherein the causing the operation of theone or more devices is based on the trajectory information that isfurther based on the one or more locations of the one or more objects.In some embodiments, the method further comprises obtain a second set oflocation information that describes locations of the multiple points onthe autonomous vehicle, wherein the second set of location informationare associated with a second position of the autonomous vehicle alongthe trajectory; and upon determining that at least one locationinformation from the second set is within a first pre-determineddistance of a pre-determined position associated with the parking area:obtain, at a first time and from a magnetic sensor located on a frontbumper of the autonomous vehicle, a first signal indicating a firstdistance from the magnetic sensor to a fiducial marker located on aperimeter of the parking area, wherein the causing the operation of theone or more devices is based on the trajectory information and is basedon the first distance from the magnetic sensor to the fiducial marker.

In some embodiments, upon determining that the at least one locationinformation is within the first pre-determined distance of thepre-determined position associated with the parking area, the methodfurther comprises obtain, from a wheel teeth counter sensor at a secondtime that is later in time than the first time, a second signalindicating a second distance travelled by the autonomous vehicle; andcause the autonomous vehicle to park the autonomous vehicle upondetermining that a difference between the first distance and the seconddistance is within a second pre-determined distance associated with thefiducial marker. In some embodiments, the second pre-determined distanceis less than the first pre-determined distance. In some embodiments, themethod further comprises receive, from at least two proximity sensors,signals that indicates at least two distances from the at least twoproximity sensors to an object located next to the autonomous vehicle,wherein a first proximity sensor of the at least two proximity sensorsis located on a side of a front region of the autonomous vehicle,wherein a second proximity sensor of the at least two proximity sensorsis located on the side of a rear region of the autonomous vehicle, andwherein the causing the operation of the one or more devices is based onthe trajectory information and is based on the at least two distances.

In some embodiments, the object includes another vehicle, and the methodincludes determine that the autonomous vehicle has successfully parallelparked next to the another vehicle in response to the at least twodistances being within a pre-determined value of each other. In someembodiments, the method further includes obtaining an image from acamera located on the autonomous vehicle; and determining that a trafficsign in the image indicates a speed limit, wherein the causing theoperation of the one or more devices is based on the trajectoryinformation and the speed limit. In some embodiments, the method furtherincludes determining a position of the autonomous vehicle along thetrajectory based on a plurality of GPS coordinates that are periodicallyprovided by the plurality of GPS devices as the autonomous vehicle istraveling along the trajectory.

In some embodiments, the method further includes obtaining a second setof location information that describes locations of the multiple pointson the autonomous vehicle, wherein the second set of locationinformation are associated with a second position of the autonomousvehicle along the trajectory; and upon determining that at least onelocation information from the second set is within a firstpre-determined distance of a pre-determined position associated with theparking area: obtaining, from a magnetic sensor located underneath theautonomous vehicle, a first signal indicating a first distance from themagnetic sensor to a fiducial marker located in the parking area,wherein the causing the operation of the one or more devices is based onthe trajectory information and is based on the first distance from themagnetic sensor to the fiducial marker. In some embodiments, thefiducial markers include a wireless transmitter or a metal object. Insome embodiments, the operation of the one or more devices is causeduntil the autonomous vehicle is within a range of the fiducial marker.

In yet another exemplary aspect, the above-described method is embodiedin a non-transitory computer readable storage medium. The non-transitorycomputer readable storage medium includes code that when executed by aprocessor, causes the processor to perform the methods described in thispatent document.

In yet another exemplary embodiment, a device that is configured oroperable to perform the above-described methods is disclosed.

The above and other aspects and their implementations are described ingreater detail in the drawings, the descriptions, and the claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 shows a block diagram of an example vehicle ecosystem in which anexemplary automated parking system for an autonomous vehicle can beimplemented.

FIG. 2 shows an example parking scenario for the automated parkingtechnology.

FIG. 3 shows an exemplary flow diagram to perform automated parkingoperations for a vehicle.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Developments in autonomous driving technology have led to development ofsemi-trailer trucks that can be autonomously driven to deliver goods toa destination. A semi-trailer truck can be autonomously driven onhighways or major roads. However, when an autonomous semi-trailer truckarrives at its destination, a driver disengages autonomous vehiclenavigation technology and manually drives the semi-trailer truck to aparking spot. This patent document describes technology that can enablea vehicle to be autonomously driven to a parking spot, such as in adesignated parking position or in an undesignated parking position.

As shown below, in Section I, this patent document describes the deviceslocated on or in an autonomous vehicle that can enable automated parkingapplication. In Section II of this patent document, techniques aredescribed to facilitate automated parking of an autonomous vehicle. Theexample headings for the various sections below are used to facilitatethe understanding of the disclosed subject matter and do not limit thescope of the claimed subject matter in any way. Accordingly, one or morefeatures of one example section can be combined with one or morefeatures of another example section.

I. Example Autonomous Vehicle Technology For Automated ParkingApplication

FIG. 1 shows a block diagram of an example vehicle ecosystem 100 inwhich an exemplary automated parking system for an autonomous vehicle105 can be implemented. The vehicle ecosystem 100 includes severalsystems and electrical devices that can generate, deliver, or bothgenerate and deliver one or more sources of information, such as datapackets or pieces of information, and related services to the in-vehiclecontrol computer 150 that may be located in an autonomous vehicle 105.An autonomous vehicle 105 may be a car, a truck, a semi-trailer truck,or any land-based transporting vehicle. The in-vehicle control computer150 can be in data communication with a plurality of vehicle subsystems140, all of which can be resident in an autonomous vehicle 105. Avehicle subsystem interface 160 is provided to facilitate datacommunication between the in-vehicle control computer 150 and theplurality of vehicle subsystems 140. The vehicle subsystem interface caninclude a wireless transceiver, a Controller Area Network (CAN)transceiver, an Ethernet transceiver, or any combination thereof.

The autonomous vehicle 105 may include various vehicle subsystems thatsupport the operation of autonomous vehicle 105. The vehicle subsystemsmay include a vehicle drive subsystem 142, a vehicle sensor subsystem144, and a vehicle control subsystem 146 in any combination. The vehicledrive subsystem 142 may include components operable to provide poweredmotion for the autonomous vehicle 105. In an example embodiment, thevehicle drive subsystem 142 may include an engine or motor, wheels,tires, a transmission, an electrical subsystem, and a power source(e.g., battery and/or alternator).

The vehicle sensor subsystem 144 may include a number of sensorsconfigured to sense information about an environment or condition of theautonomous vehicle 105. For example, the vehicle sensor subsystem 144may include an inertial measurement unit (IMU), Global PositioningSystem (GPS) devices, a RADAR unit, a laser range finder/LIDAR unit,cameras or image capture devices, one or more proximity sensors, one ormore magnetic sensors, and one or more wheel teeth counter sensors (orone or more gear teeth counter sensors) that can measure wheel rotationso that the wheel teeth counter sensor(s) can use such information toestimate and provide a distance travelled by the vehicle 105. Thevehicle sensor subsystem 144 may also include sensors configured tomonitor internal systems of the autonomous vehicle 105 (e.g., an O₂monitor, a fuel gauge, an engine oil temperature).

The IMU may include any combination of sensors (e.g., accelerometers andgyroscopes) configured to sense position and orientation changes of theautonomous vehicle 105 based on inertial acceleration. The GPS devicesmay be any sensor configured to estimate a geographic location of theautonomous vehicle 105. For this purpose, the GPS devices may include areceiver/transmitter operable to provide information regarding theposition of the autonomous vehicle 105 with respect to the earth. For alarge vehicle, such as a semi-trailer truck, one GPS device can belocated in a front region (e.g., on or in a tractor unit) and anotherGPS device can be located in a rear region (e.g., on or in a trailerunit). In another example, a first GPS device can be located in a frontregion of the large vehicle, a second GPS device can be located in themiddle region (e.g., at a lengthwise halfway point) of the largevehicle, and a third GPS device can be located in a rear region of thelarge vehicle. Having multiple GPS devices on a large vehicle isbeneficial technical feature at least because the parking module 165 ofthe in-vehicle control computer 150 can more precisely determine thelocation of multiple regions of the large vehicle.

The RADAR unit may represent a system that utilizes radio signals tosense objects within the local environment of the autonomous vehicle105. In some embodiments, in addition to sensing the objects, the RADARunit may additionally be configured to sense the speed and the headingof the objects proximate to the autonomous vehicle 105. The laser rangefinder or LIDAR unit may be any sensor configured to use lasers to senseobjects in the environment in which the autonomous vehicle 105 islocated. The cameras may include devices configured to capture aplurality of images of the environment of the autonomous vehicle 105.The cameras may be still image cameras or motion video cameras.

The vehicle sensor subsystems 144 may include proximity sensors locatedon at least two opposite sides of the autonomous vehicle 105. Theproximity sensors can include, for example, ultrasonic sensors and canmeasure distance from the location of the proximity sensors to anothervehicle or object located adjacent to the autonomous vehicle 105. Thus,if a proximity sensor is located on one side of the autonomous vehicle105 (e.g., to the right side and not the front or rear), then theproximity sensor can send signals to the parking module 165 to indicatewhether another vehicle or object is located to the right of theautonomous vehicle 105. In some embodiments, the proximity sensors canindicate to the parking module 165 a presence of another vehicle orobject. In some embodiments, the proximity sensors can also provide tothe parking module 165 a distance from the location of the proximitysensors to the location of the detected another vehicle or object.

The vehicle sensor subsystems 144 may include one or more magneticsensors that may be located on the chassis, front bumper and/or rearbumper of the autonomous vehicle 105. A magnetic sensor can determine apresence of a fiducial marker (e.g., a metal object or a wirelesstransmitter) located on the road. Thus, if a magnetic sensor is locatedin the middle and on the bottom of a front bumper of the autonomousvehicle 105, then the magnetic sensor can send signals to the parkingmodule 165 to indicate whether it detects a presence of a fiducialmarker located on the road, as well as possibly indicating a distancefrom the magnetic sensor to the fiducial marker. The fiducial marker canbe placed on or in a perimeter of each parking area (as shown in FIG. 2and as further described below) so that the autonomous vehicle 105 canbe precisely driven to a proper, or predetermined, destination.

The vehicle sensor subsystems 144 may include a wheel teeth countersensor (or gear teeth counter sensor) that can provide information thatcan be used to obtain a distance traveled by a wheel to the parkingmodule 165. The wheel teeth counter sensor can detect or count teeth ofa gear when the gear moves and can provide to the parking module 165 acount of the gear teeth. The parking module 165 can obtain a distancetraveled by the autonomous vehicle 105 based on the count value and apre-determined value corresponding to a distance traveled when a gearmoves from a first gear tooth to a second adjacent gear tooth. In someembodiments, any device which can measure the rotation of an axel orwheel (e.g., a rotary encoder) may be used to determine a distancetraveled by the autonomous vehicle 105. As further explained in thispatent document, the vehicle sensor subsystems may include any one ormore of the sensors shown in FIG. 1 for automated parking applications.

The vehicle control subsystem 146 may be configured to control operationof the autonomous vehicle 105 and its components. Accordingly, thevehicle control subsystem 146 may include various elements such as athrottle, an accelerator, a brake unit, a navigation unit, and asteering system.

When the autonomous vehicle includes an internal combustion engine, thethrottle may be configured to control, for instance, fuel to the engine,and in turn the power generated by the engine. As such, the throttle oran accelerator may control the speed of the autonomous vehicle 105. Thebrake unit can include any combination of mechanisms configured todecelerate the autonomous vehicle 105. The brake unit can use frictionto slow the wheels in a standard manner. The navigation unit may be anysystem configured to determine a driving path or route for theautonomous vehicle 105. The navigation unit may additionally beconfigured to update the driving path dynamically while the autonomousvehicle 105 is in operation. In some embodiments, the navigation unitmay be configured to incorporate data from the GPS devices and one ormore predetermined maps so as to determine the driving path for theautonomous vehicle 105.

Many or all of the functions of the autonomous vehicle 105 can becontrolled by the in-vehicle control computer 150. The in-vehiclecontrol computer 150 may include at least one data processor 170 (whichcan include at least one microprocessor) that executes processinginstructions stored in a non-transitory computer readable medium, suchas the data storage device 175 or memory. The in-vehicle controlcomputer 150 may also represent a plurality of computing devices thatmay serve to control individual components or subsystems of theautonomous vehicle 105 in a distributed fashion. In some embodiments,the data storage device 175 may contain processing instructions (e.g.,program logic) executable by the data processor 170 to perform variousmethods and/or functions of the autonomous vehicle 105, including thosedescribed in this patent document. For instance, the data processor 170executes the operations associated with parking module 165 for managingsensor data and determining how to park the autonomous vehicle 105 asdescribed in this patent document. The data storage device 175 maycontain additional instructions as well, including instructions totransmit data to, receive data from, interact with, or control one ormore of the vehicle drive subsystem 142, the vehicle sensor subsystem144, and the vehicle control subsystem 146. In some embodiment,additional components or devices can be added to the various subsystemsor one or more components or devices (e.g., LiDAR or Radar shown inFIG. 1) can be removed without affecting the techniques described inthis patent document for the automated parking technology. Thein-vehicle control computer 150 can be configured to include a dataprocessor 170 and a data storage device 175.

The in-vehicle control computer 150 may control the function of theautonomous vehicle 105 based on inputs received from various vehiclesubsystems (e.g., the vehicle drive subsystem 142, the vehicle sensorsubsystem 144, and the vehicle control subsystem 146). For example, thein-vehicle control computer 150 may use input from the vehicle controlsubsystem 146 in order to control the steering system to avoid anobstacle detected by the vehicle sensor subsystem 144, move in acontrolled manner, or follow a path or trajectory to a parking location.In an example embodiment, the in-vehicle control computer 150 can beoperable to provide control over many aspects of the autonomous vehicle105 and its subsystems. The parking module can constantly orperiodically receive information such as wheel speed, current enginetorque, steering angle, brake pressure, and get camera, GPS, ultrasonicsensors reading. Based on the received information, the parking modulecan calculate desired commands to control driving related operations ofthe autonomous vehicle 105.

II. Example Techniques For Automated Parking

The techniques described in this patent document can enable anautonomous vehicle to park in a designated parking location (e.g.,marked parking spots) or in an undersigned parking location.

FIG. 2 shows an example parking scenario for the automated parkingtechnology. FIG. 2 shows a bird's-eye view of an autonomous vehicle 202located in a parking location at a starting position 212. The parkinglocation includes having multiple parking areas 204 a-204 d, where theparking areas 204 a-204 d are respectively associated with GPScoordinates that describe pre-determined positions 206 a-206 d of theparking areas 204 a-204 d. As further described below, each parking areacan be associated with a pre-determined position that can be used by theparking module of the in-vehicle control computer to determinetrajectory information that indicates a trajectory 214 that theautonomous vehicle 202 can follow to be guided to parking area 204 d.Trajectory information may include, for example, GPS coordinates ofmultiple points on the trajectory where the autonomous vehicle 202 isexpected to travel or position information of multiple points on thetrajectory relative to the location of the autonomous vehicle 202. Forease of description and illustration, the parking areas 204 a-204 d areshown to include parking related road markers. In some embodiments, theparking areas 204 a-204 d may include parking road markers that indicatethe area within which the autonomous vehicle 202 is expected to beparked. In some embodiments, the parking areas may be unmarked.

The autonomous vehicle 202 includes multiple GPS devices 208 a, 208 b.In FIG. 2, one GPS device 208 a is located on or in the tractor unit 203of the semi-trailer truck 202 and another GPS device 208 b is located onor in the rear of the trailer unit 205 of the semi-trailer truck 202.GPS devices 208 a, 208 b can provide coordinates related to theautonomous vehicle's 202 position to the parking module (165 in FIG. 1).The parking module can use GPS coordinates provided by the GPS devices208 a, 208 b and the location of the parking area 204 d (e.g., apre-determined GPS coordinates of the pre-determined position 206 d) toobtain trajectory information that describes a trajectory 214 for theautonomous vehicle 202 to be driven from the starting position 212 ofthe autonomous vehicle to a designated parking area (e.g., 204 d). Thetrajectory information can be determined using GPS coordinates of thestarting position 212 (e.g., GPS coordinates of GPS device 208 a) of theautonomous vehicle 202 and the location of a parking area 204 d (e.g.,the pre-determined position 206 d of the parking area 204 d). Theparking module can also use the GPS coordinates that may be periodicallyprovided by the GPS devices 208 a, 208 b to measure the position of theautonomous vehicle 202 as it is being driven along the trajectory 214 tothe parking area 204 d.

A technical benefit of having multiple GPS devices 208 a, 208 b locatedat different regions of the autonomous vehicle 202 is that it can enablethe parking module to determine an orientation of the autonomous vehicle202 relative to a pre-determined orientation of parking area 204 d. Forexample, the multiple GPS devices 208 a, 208 b can be located width-wisein the middle of the front region and in the middle of the rear regionof the autonomous vehicle 202 and the pre-determined orientation canincludes GPS coordinates of two-predetermined positions locatedwidth-wise in the middle of the parking area. The width-wise directionis shown on the top right corner of FIG. 2. In this example, the parkingmodule can use the four sets of GPS coordinates (i.e., from the GPSdevices 208 a, 208 b, and two pre-determined positions) to determine theorientation of the autonomous vehicle 202 relative to the orientation ofthe parking area and to determine the trajectory information.

The parking module can cause the autonomous vehicle 202 to be drivenalong the trajectory 214 described by the trajectory information to theparking area 204 d. For example, the parking module can, based on atleast the trajectory information, send one or more signals to one ormore devices (steering system motor(s), brake, throttle, etc.,) in theautonomous vehicle 202 to drive the autonomous vehicle 202 to a parkingarea 204 d. The parking module can determine the one or more signalsbased on trajectory information. For example, if the autonomous vehicle202 is located at the current position 212, then the parking module candetermine that to follow along the trajectory 214, the autonomousvehicle's steering device/motors need to be turned to the right bycertain degrees and then to the left by certain degrees to reach theparking area 204 d. The parking module can also determine an amount ofthrottle and/or amount of brakes to be applied based on at least thetrajectory information.

II.(a). Fiducial Based Parking

GPS devices 208 a, 208 b can periodically provide position relatedcoordinates to the parking module. However, GPS technology is not asaccurate as would be needed for precise parking related operations of anautonomous vehicle such as a semi-trailer truck. Thus, the automatedparking technology can use a multi-zoned approach. For example, a coarseadjustment driving zone can be located within a distance of 10 feet to100 feet of the pre-determined position 206 d of a parking area 204 d,and a fine adjustment driving zone can be located within a distance of10 feet of one or more fiducial markers 210 that may be located on or ina perimeter of each parking area (e.g., as shown as 210 for parking area204 d). In FIG. 2, one or more fiducial markers 210 are shown only inparking area 204 d for ease of illustration. Each parking area 204 a-204d may include one or more fiducial markers 210 on at least some portion(e.g., three sides) of the perimeter of each parking area. Inembodiments where the fiducial marker(s) 210 are located on three sidesof a parking area, such a feature can provide a technical benefit ofenabling the one or more sensors in the autonomous vehicle to sense thefiducial marker(s) 210 to guide the autonomous vehicle into the parkingarea (e.g., by determining amount of steering and/or throttle to parkthe autonomous vehicle within a pre-defined region such as within acertain distance of the fiducial marker(s) 210).

Using the example values described above and using GPS coordinates ofthe autonomous vehicle 202, if the parking module determines that theautonomous vehicle 202 is located within 10 feet of the pre-determinedposition 206 d, then the parking module can use the measurementsobtained from one or more sensors located on or in the autonomousvehicle 202 to detect the fiducial marker(s) 210 to finely control themovements of the autonomous vehicle 202. In some embodiments, theparking module can use the GPS coordinates within the fine adjustmentdriving zone to control movements of the autonomous vehicle 202 but mayrely more so on the information obtained from the one or more sensorsthat can provide better position resolution or accuracy compared to GPStechnology within the fine adjustment driving zone. The automatedparking techniques and features based on GPS and fiducial marker(s) arefurther described below.

In the automated parking technology, the information provided by GPStechnology can be used by the parking module (165 in FIG. 1) to sendinstructions to one or more devices (e.g., steering system motor(s),brake, throttle, etc.,) in the autonomous vehicle 202 to coarsely drivethe autonomous vehicle 202 to a parking area 204 d, and the informationprovided by one or more sensors (e.g., magnetic sensor(s) and/orproximity sensor(s)) located on the autonomous vehicle 202 can be usedby the parking module 165 to finely adjust the driving behavior of theone or more devices or subsystems.

Detection of the fiducial marker(s) 210 can be done by the one or moresensors (e.g., magnetic sensors or LiDARs or Radars or wirelessreceiver) located on the autonomous vehicle 202. For example, if afiducial marker 210 includes a metal object, magnetic sensors locatedunderneath the autonomous vehicle 202 may detect the presence anddistance from the magnetic sensors to such metal objects. The parkingmodule can obtain information from a magnetic sensor located underneaththe autonomous vehicle upon determining that the autonomous vehicle 202is within the fine adjustment driving zone. For example, the parkingmodule can obtain from the GPS devices 208 a, 208 b a second set ofmultiple GPS coordinates associated with a second location along thetrajectory 214 after the autonomous vehicle 202 has left the currentposition 212 and is in transit to the parking area 204 d. The parkingmodule can enable (e.g., turn on) and/or receive or process signals fromthe magnetic sensors upon determining that at least one GPS coordinates(e.g., for GPS device 208 a) is within a first pre-determined distanceof a pre-determined position 206 d of the parking area 204 d.

The processing of signals from the one or more sensors within a firstpre-determined distance or within a fine adjustment driving zone canbeneficially preserve computational resources. This preservation ofcomputational resources is at least because the one or more sensors maynot be able to detect the fiducial marker if the autonomous vehicle 202is located outside of the fine adjustment driving zone (or outside thedetection range of the one or more sensors). In scenarios where thefiducial marker(s) 210 are located outside of the detection range of theone or more sensors, the parking module can preserve computationalresources by not unnecessarily monitoring the signals from the one ormore sensors.

The parking module (165 in FIG. 1) can obtain from a magnetic sensor ata first time a first signal indicating a first distance from themagnetic sensor to a fiducial marker 210. The parking module 165 candetermine and send the one or more signals to the one or more devices(e.g., components or sub-systems such as vehicle drive subsystems 142,vehicle control subsystems 146) in the autonomous vehicle 202 to drivethe autonomous vehicle 202, where the signal(s) are determined based onthe trajectory information and the first distance. In some embodiments,the parking module 165 can perform fine adjustment to the drivingoperation of the autonomous vehicle 202 until the parking moduledetermines from the one or more sensors that the autonomous vehicle 202is within an acceptable range of the fiducial marker(s) 210. Forexample, the parking module can obtain from the magnetic sensor at asecond time (after the first time mentioned above) a second signalindicating a second distance from the magnetic sensor to the fiducialmarker 210. The parking module can determine that the second distance isless than or equal to a second pre-determined distance associated withthe fiducial marker and can send signal(s) to the device(s) to applybrakes and/or park the autonomous vehicle 202. In some embodiments, thesecond pre-determined distance is less than the first pre-determineddistance at least because the first pre-determined distance may describea transition point between a coarse adjustment driving zone and a fineadjustment driving zone, and the second pre-determined distance isassociated with determining when an autonomous vehicle has successfullyreached an acceptable position within the parking area.

Fiducial markers may include other types of physical or virtual markers.In an example, if the fiducial marker 210 includes a wirelesstransmitter, a wireless receiver can receive the transmitted signal andcan determine distance to the wireless transmitter based on signalstrength determined by the wireless receiver or determined by parkingmodule based on received signal metrics provided by the wirelessreceiver. In another example, if the fiducial marker 210 includes araised object, the LiDAR or Radar can detect such raised objects and theparking module can determine distance from the data provided by LiDAR orRadar to the raised objects.

In some embodiments, multiple sensors can be deployed on the autonomousvehicle 202. For example, a first set of one or more magnetic sensor canbe located in or on the bottom of the front bumper in the tractor unitand a second set of one or more magnetic sensors can be located in or onthe bottom of the rear bumper in the trailer unit. In some embodiments,the fiducial marker(s) 210 can be physical markers (e.g., metal object,markings, raised objects, etc.,) or virtual (e.g., wireless transmitter,etc.,).

II.(b). Lane and Object Detection

The automated parking technology can use images obtained by cameraslocated on the autonomous vehicle 202 for parking related operations.Autonomous vehicle 202 can be driven autonomously by performing imageprocessing on the images obtained by the cameras. In some embodiments, aparking module (165 in FIG. 1) can perform image processing on an imageobtained from a camera located on the autonomous vehicle 202 todetermine a presence and/or one or more locations of one or more lanesassociated with a parking area. The one or more lanes can be consideredfiducial marker(s) and can include physical lane markers located on orpainted on the road. The parking module can determine from an image apresence of a lane and the location of one or more points along thelane. The parking module 165 can use the location information associatedwith the one or more lanes to further determine the trajectoryinformation (e.g., refine the GPS based trajectory information) so that,based on the determined or refined trajectory information, the parkingmodule can send signals that instruct one or more devices (e.g.,steering system motor(s), brake, throttle, etc.,) in the autonomousvehicle 202 to drive the autonomous vehicle 202 to a parking area 204 d.

In some embodiments, a parking module can perform image processing on animage obtained from a camera located on the autonomous vehicle todetermine one or more attributes (e.g., presence and/or location(s)and/or character recognition of traffic signs) related to one or moreobjects detected in the image. The one or more objects may include, forexample, a pedestrian, another vehicle, a traffic sign, or a speed bump.The parking module can use the one or more attributes associated withthe one or more objects to further determine the trajectory information(e.g., refine the GPS based trajectory information) so that, based onthe determined or refined trajectory information, the parking module cansend signals that instruct one or more devices (e.g., steering systemmotor(s), brake, throttle, etc.,) in the autonomous vehicle 202 to drivethe autonomous vehicle 202 to a parking area 204 d by performing, forexample, object avoidance or object compliance. An example of objectavoidance can include sending a signal to engage brakes upon detecting apedestrian. An example of object compliance can include the parkingmodule determining the speed limit attribute by performing imageprocessing on the traffic sign and can send signals to drive theautonomous vehicle 202 at a speed less than the posted speed limit.

II.(c). Proximity Sensor For Parking

The autonomous vehicle 202 may include proximity sensors that may belocated on at least two opposite sides of the autonomous vehicle 202. Abenefit of including proximity sensors for automated parking is that itcan facilitate or assist in sequential or parallel parking of theautonomous vehicle 202 relative to other vehicles that may be parkednext to the parking area 204 b where the autonomous vehicle 202 isinstructed to park.

The parking module can determine that the autonomous vehicle 202 hassuccessfully parallel parked relative to another vehicle upondetermining that two proximity sensors located on one side of theautonomous vehicle 202 provide a same two distance measurement valuesrelative to another vehicle located next to the autonomous vehicle 202.The parking module can determine that the two proximity sensors providea same two distance measurement values upon determining that the twodistance measurement values are within a pre-determined acceptabletolerance of each other. For example, if a first distance measurementfrom a first proximity sensor located on a side of tractor unit (orfront region of the autonomous vehicle 202) is 24.0 inches and if asecond distance measurement from a second proximity sensor located onthe side of trailer unit (or rear region of the autonomous vehicle 202)is 24.2 inches, then the parking module can determine that the twodistance measurement values are the same (e.g., within a pre-determinedacceptable tolerance of 0.3 inches of each other).

In some embodiments, the parking module can send signals that instructone or more device in the autonomous vehicle 202 to adjust theautonomous vehicle 202 in response to receiving multiple distancemeasurement values from the multiple proximity sensors. When the parkingmodule determines that the first distance measurement from the firstproximity sensor is outside the pre-determined acceptable tolerancerelative to the second distance measurement from the second proximitysensor, then the parking module can adjust the driving operation toproperly parallel park the autonomous vehicle 202. For example, if theparking module obtains the first distance measurement of 24.0 inches andthe second distance measurement of 30 inches, then the parking modulecan determine that the autonomous vehicle 202 is not parallel to theobject next to the autonomous vehicle 202 and the parking module cansend instructions to enable the steering motor to turn to minimize thedifference between the two distance measurement values.

II.(d). Feedback System

The parking module can receive information from the GPS device 208 a,208 b and/or one or more sensors to determine and send signals to adjustthe autonomous vehicle 202. For example, if the parking moduledetermines, using signals provided by the one or more sensors, that theautonomous vehicle 202 is within a pre-determined area including theparking position where it should be parked (e.g., within a certaindistance of a fiducial marker), the parking module can send signals toengage the autonomous vehicle's brakes and park the autonomous vehicle.In some embodiments, if the parking module determines that theautonomous vehicle 202 is within a pre-determined area including theparking position of where it should be parked but that the proximitysensors indicate that the vehicle is not parallel parked relative to aneighboring vehicle, then the parking module can send signals to one ormore devices to back up the autonomous vehicle 202, turn the steeringmotors, and re-position the autonomous vehicle 202 to be properlyparallel parked. The steering motor angles can be determined based atleast on the distance measurement values provided by the proximitysensors.

In some embodiments, measurements provided by a wheel teeth countersensor can be used by the parking module to determine a precise distancetraveled by the autonomous vehicle. The wheel teeth counter sensor canprovide information used by the parking module to calculate distancetraveled by the autonomous vehicle 202 which can be combined with theGPS information and/or information provided by the one or more sensorsto instruct one or more devices in the autonomous vehicle for preciseparking. For example, in the fine adjustment driving zone, when the oneor more sensors provide information regarding the fiducial marker(s) 210that can be used by the parking module to determine distance from theone or more sensors to the fiducial marker(s) 210, the parking modulecan use the wheel teeth counter to precisely measure how much distancethe truck has travelled so that the parking module can instruct theautonomous vehicle 202 to engage brakes or to maintain throttle amount.Specifically, in an example, if the parking module determines that afirst distance from the one or more sensors to the fiducial marker(s) is10 feet, the parking module can instruct the throttle to move theautonomous vehicle 202 a distance of 9.5 feet which can be measured inreal-time by the wheel teeth sensor or another physical measuring deviceattached to a wheel or axel of the autonomous vehicle. In this example,the parking module can engage brakes and/or park the autonomous vehicleupon determining that a difference between the first distance (i.e., 10feet) and a second distance measured by the wheel teeth counter sensor(e.g., 9.5 of travelled distance) is within a pre-determined value(e.g., 1.0 foot). The pre-determined value can describe an acceptablerange within a location of a fiducial marker within which the autonomousvehicle 202 can be parked.

FIG. 3 shows an exemplary flow diagram to perform automated parkingoperations for a vehicle. At operation 302, the parking module obtains,from a plurality of global positioning system (GPS) devices located onor in an autonomous vehicle, a first set of location information thatdescribes locations of multiple points on the autonomous vehicle. Thefirst set of location information are associated with a first positionof the autonomous vehicle. At operation 304, the parking moduledetermines, based on the first set of location information and alocation of the parking area, a trajectory information that describes atrajectory for the autonomous vehicle to be driven from the firstposition of the autonomous vehicle to a parking area.

At operation 306, the parking module causing the autonomous vehicle tobe driven along the trajectory to the parking area by causing operationof one or more devices located in the autonomous vehicle based on atleast the trajectory information. In some embodiments, the causing theoperation of the one or more devices is based on determining and sendingone or more signals to the one or more devices, where the one or moresignals are determined based on at least the trajectory information.

In some embodiments, the method shown in FIG. 3 further includesobtaining an image from a camera located on the autonomous vehicle; anddetermining, from the image, one or more locations of one or more lanesassociated with the parking area, where the causing the operation of theone or more devices is based on the trajectory information that isfurther based on the one or more locations of the one or more lanes. Insome embodiments, the method shown in FIG. 3 further includes obtainingan image from a camera located on the autonomous vehicle, anddetermining, from the image, one or more attributes related to one ormore objects detected in the image, where the causing the operation ofthe one or more devices is based on the trajectory information that isfurther based on the one or more attributes of the one or more objects.In some embodiments, the one or more objects may include a pedestrian,another vehicle, a traffic sign, or a speed bump.

In some embodiments, the method shown in FIG. 3 further includesobtaining a second set of location information that describes locationsof the multiple points on the autonomous vehicle, where the second setof location information are associated with a second position of theautonomous vehicle along the trajectory, and upon determining that atleast one location information from the second set is within a firstpre-determined distance of a pre-determined position associated with theparking area: obtaining, at a first time and from a magnetic sensorlocated underneath the autonomous vehicle, a first signal indicating afirst distance from the magnetic sensor to a fiducial marker located ona perimeter of the parking area, where the causing the operation of theone or more devices is based on the trajectory information and is basedon the first distance from the magnetic sensor to the fiducial marker.

In some embodiments, upon determining that the at least one locationinformation is within the first pre-determined distance of thepre-determined position associated with the parking area, the methodshown in FIG. 3 further comprises: obtaining, from the magnetic sensorat a second time that is later in time than the first time, a secondsignal indicating a second distance from the magnetic sensor to thefiducial marker; and causing the autonomous vehicle to apply brakes andpark the autonomous vehicle upon determining that the second distance iswithin a second pre-determined distance associated with the fiducialmarker. In some embodiments, upon determining that the at least onelocation information is within the first pre-determined distance of thepre-determined position associated with the parking area, the methodshown in FIG. 3 further comprises: obtaining, from a wheel teeth countersensor at a second time that is later in time than the first time, asecond signal indicating a second distance travelled by the autonomousvehicle; and causing the autonomous vehicle to park the autonomousvehicle upon determining that a difference between the first distanceand the second distance is within a second pre-determined distanceassociated with the fiducial marker. Alternatively, or additionally, arotary encoder may be used to send a signal that is indicative of thenumber of revolutions of at least one wheel and a second distancetraveled by the autonomous vehicle can be calculated from this signal.

In some embodiments, the method shown in FIG. 3 further includesreceiving, from at least two proximity sensors, signals that indicatesat least two distances from the at least two proximity sensors to anobject located next to the autonomous vehicle, where a first proximitysensor of the at least two proximity sensors is located on a side of afront region of the autonomous vehicle, and where a second proximitysensor of the at least two proximity sensors is located on the side of arear region of the autonomous vehicle, and where the causing theoperation of the one or more devices is based on the trajectoryinformation and is based on the at least two distances. In someembodiments, wherein the object includes a vehicle, and the in-vehiclecontrol computer in the autonomous vehicle is configured to determinethat the autonomous vehicle has successfully parallel parked next to thevehicle in response to the at least two distances being within apre-determined value of each other.

In this disclosure, LiDAR and LIDAR are used to refer to light detectionand ranging devices and methods, and alternatively, or additionally,laser detection and ranging devices and methods. The use of theseacronyms does not imply limitation of the described devices, systems, ormethods to the use of one over the other.

In this document the term “exemplary” is used to mean “an example of”and, unless otherwise stated, does not imply an ideal or a preferredembodiment. In this document, the term “microcontroller” can include aprocessor and its associated memory.

Some of the embodiments described herein are described in the generalcontext of methods or processes, which may be implemented in oneembodiment by a computer program product, embodied in acomputer-readable medium, including computer-executable instructions,such as program code, executed by computers in networked environments. Acomputer-readable medium may include removable and non-removable storagedevices including, but not limited to, Read Only Memory (ROM), RandomAccess Memory (RAM), compact discs (CDs), digital versatile discs (DVD),etc. Therefore, the computer-readable media can include a non-transitorystorage media. Generally, program modules may include routines,programs, objects, components, data structures, etc. that performparticular tasks or implement particular abstract data types. Computer-or processor-executable instructions, associated data structures, andprogram modules represent examples of program code for executing stepsof the methods disclosed herein. The particular sequence of suchexecutable instructions or associated data structures representsexamples of corresponding acts for implementing the functions describedin such steps or processes.

Some of the disclosed embodiments can be implemented as devices ormodules using hardware circuits, software, or combinations thereof. Forexample, a hardware circuit implementation can include discrete analogand/or digital components that are, for example, integrated as part of aprinted circuit board. Alternatively, or additionally, the disclosedcomponents or modules can be implemented as an Application SpecificIntegrated Circuit (ASIC) and/or as a Field Programmable Gate Array(FPGA) device. Some implementations may additionally or alternativelyinclude a digital signal processor (DSP) that is a specializedmicroprocessor with an architecture optimized for the operational needsof digital signal processing associated with the disclosedfunctionalities of this application. Similarly, the various componentsor sub-components within each module may be implemented in software,hardware or firmware. The connectivity between the modules and/orcomponents within the modules may be provided using any one of theconnectivity methods and media that is known in the art, including, butnot limited to, communications over the Internet, wired, or wirelessnetworks using the appropriate protocols.

While this document contains many specifics, these should not beconstrued as limitations on the scope of an invention that is claimed orof what may be claimed, but rather as descriptions of features specificto particular embodiments. Certain features that are described in thisdocument in the context of separate embodiments can also be implementedin combination in a single embodiment. Conversely, various features thatare described in the context of a single embodiment can also beimplemented in multiple embodiments separately or in any suitablesub-combination. Moreover, although features may be described above asacting in certain combinations and even initially claimed as such, oneor more features from a claimed combination can in some cases be excisedfrom the combination, and the claimed combination may be directed to asub-combination or a variation of a sub-combination. Similarly, whileoperations are depicted in the drawings in a particular order, thisshould not be understood as requiring that such operations be performedin the particular order shown or in sequential order, or that allillustrated operations be performed, to achieve desirable results.

Only a few implementations and examples are described and otherimplementations, enhancements and variations can be made based on whatis described and illustrated in this disclosure.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method of performing automated parking of avehicle, comprising: obtaining, from a plurality of global positioningsystem (GPS) devices located on or in an autonomous vehicle, a first setof location information that describes locations of multiple points onthe autonomous vehicle, wherein the first set of location informationare associated with a first position of the autonomous vehicle;determining, based on the first set of location information and alocation of the parking area, a trajectory information that describes atrajectory for the autonomous vehicle to be driven from the firstposition of the autonomous vehicle to a parking area; and causing theautonomous vehicle to be driven along the trajectory to the parking areaby causing operation of one or more devices located in the autonomousvehicle based on at least the trajectory information.
 2. The method ofclaim 1, further comprising: obtaining an image from a camera located onthe autonomous vehicle; and determining, from the image, a location of alane associated with the parking area, wherein the causing the operationof the one or more devices is based on the trajectory information thatis based on the location of the lane.
 3. The method of claim 1, furthercomprising: obtaining an image from a camera located on the autonomousvehicle; and determining, from the image, one or more attributes relatedto one or more objects detected in the image, wherein the causing theoperation of the one or more devices is based on the trajectoryinformation that is further based on the one or more attributes of theone or more objects.
 4. The method of claim 3, wherein the one or moreobjects includes a pedestrian, another vehicle, a traffic sign, or aspeed bump.
 5. The method of claim 1, further comprising: obtaining asecond set of location information that describes locations of themultiple points on the autonomous vehicle, wherein the second set oflocation information are associated with a second position of theautonomous vehicle along the trajectory; and upon determining that atleast one location information from the second set is within a firstpre-determined distance of a pre-determined position associated with theparking area: obtaining, at a first time and from a magnetic sensorlocated underneath the autonomous vehicle, a first signal indicating afirst distance from the magnetic sensor to a fiducial marker located ona perimeter of the parking area, wherein the causing the operation ofthe one or more devices is based on the trajectory information and isbased on the first distance from the magnetic sensor to the fiducialmarker.
 6. The method of claim 1, wherein the causing the operation ofthe one or more devices is based on determining and sending one or moresignals to the one or more devices, wherein the one or more signals aredetermined based on at least the trajectory information.
 7. An apparatusfor performing automated parking of a vehicle, the apparatus comprisinga processor configured to implement a method comprising: obtain, from aplurality of global positioning system (GPS) devices located on or in anautonomous vehicle, a first set of location information that describeslocations of multiple points on the autonomous vehicle, wherein thefirst set of location information are associated with a first positionof the autonomous vehicle; determine, based on the first set of locationinformation and a location of the parking area, a trajectory informationthat describes a trajectory for the autonomous vehicle to be driven fromthe first position of the autonomous vehicle to a parking area; andcause the autonomous vehicle to be driven along the trajectory to theparking area by causing operation of one or more devices located in theautonomous vehicle based on at least the trajectory information.
 8. Theapparatus of claim 7, wherein the processor is configured to implementthe method that further comprises: obtain an image from a camera locatedon the autonomous vehicle; and determine, from the image, a location ofa lane that guide the autonomous vehicle to the parking area, whereinthe causing the operation of the one or more devices is based on thetrajectory information that is further based on the location of thelane.
 9. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein the processor is configuredto implement the method that further comprises: obtain an image from acamera located on the autonomous vehicle; and determine, from the image,one or more locations related to one or more objects detected in theimage, wherein the causing the operation of the one or more devices isbased on the trajectory information that is further based on the one ormore locations of the one or more objects.
 10. The apparatus of claim 7,wherein the processor is configured to implement the method that furthercomprises: obtain a second set of location information that describeslocations of the multiple points on the autonomous vehicle, wherein thesecond set of location information are associated with a second positionof the autonomous vehicle along the trajectory; and upon determiningthat at least one location information from the second set is within afirst pre-determined distance of a pre-determined position associatedwith the parking area: obtain, at a first time and from a magneticsensor located on a front bumper of the autonomous vehicle, a firstsignal indicating a first distance from the magnetic sensor to afiducial marker located on a perimeter of the parking area, wherein thecausing the operation of the one or more devices is based on thetrajectory information and is based on the first distance from themagnetic sensor to the fiducial marker.
 11. The apparatus of claim 10,wherein upon determining that the at least one location information iswithin the first pre-determined distance of the pre-determined positionassociated with the parking area, the processor is configured toimplement the method that further comprises: obtain, from a wheel teethcounter sensor at a second time that is later in time than the firsttime, a second signal indicating a second distance travelled by theautonomous vehicle; and cause the autonomous vehicle to park theautonomous vehicle upon determining that a difference between the firstdistance and the second distance is within a second pre-determineddistance associated with the fiducial marker.
 12. The apparatus of claim11, wherein the second pre-determined distance is less than the firstpre-determined distance.
 13. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein theprocessor is configured to implement the method that further comprises:receive, from at least two proximity sensors, signals that indicates atleast two distances from the at least two proximity sensors to an objectlocated next to the autonomous vehicle, wherein a first proximity sensorof the at least two proximity sensors is located on a side of a frontregion of the autonomous vehicle, wherein a second proximity sensor ofthe at least two proximity sensors is located on the side of a rearregion of the autonomous vehicle, and wherein the causing the operationof the one or more devices is based on the trajectory information and isbased on the at least two distances.
 14. The apparatus of claim 13,wherein the object includes another vehicle, and wherein the processoris configured to determine that the autonomous vehicle has successfullyparallel parked next to the another vehicle in response to the at leasttwo distances being within a pre-determined value of each other.
 15. Anon-transitory computer readable storage medium having code storedthereon, the code, when executed by a processor, causing the processorto implement a method of performing automated parking of a vehiclecomprising: obtaining, from a plurality of global positioning system(GPS) devices located on or in an autonomous vehicle, a first set oflocation information that describes locations of multiple points on theautonomous vehicle, wherein the first set of location information areassociated with a first position of the autonomous vehicle; determining,based on the first set of location information and a location of theparking area, a trajectory information that describes a trajectory forthe autonomous vehicle to be driven from the first position of theautonomous vehicle to a parking area; and causing the autonomous vehicleto be driven along the trajectory to the parking area by causingoperation of one or more devices located in the autonomous vehicle basedon at least the trajectory information.
 16. The non-transitory computerreadable storage medium of claim 15, wherein the method furthercomprises: obtaining an image from a camera located on the autonomousvehicle; and determining that a traffic sign in the image indicates aspeed limit, wherein the causing the operation of the one or moredevices is based on the trajectory information and the speed limit. 17.The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 15, furthercomprising: determining a position of the autonomous vehicle along thetrajectory based on a plurality of GPS coordinates that are periodicallyprovided by the plurality of GPS devices as the autonomous vehicle istraveling along the trajectory.
 18. The non-transitory computer readablestorage medium of claim 15, wherein the method further comprises:obtaining a second set of location information that describes locationsof the multiple points on the autonomous vehicle, wherein the second setof location information are associated with a second position of theautonomous vehicle along the trajectory; and upon determining that atleast one location information from the second set is within a firstpre-determined distance of a pre-determined position associated with theparking area: obtaining, from a magnetic sensor located underneath theautonomous vehicle, a first signal indicating a first distance from themagnetic sensor to a fiducial marker located in the parking area,wherein the causing the operation of the one or more devices is based onthe trajectory information and is based on the first distance from themagnetic sensor to the fiducial marker.
 19. The non-transitory computerreadable storage medium of claim 18, wherein the fiducial markersinclude a wireless transmitter or a metal object.
 20. The non-transitorycomputer readable storage medium of claim 18, wherein the processor isconfigured to cause the operation of the one or more devices until theautonomous vehicle is within a range of the fiducial marker.